JP2001237835A - Method and system for diagnosing communication connection fault - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a system and a method for diagnosing a communication connection fault where an on-line center receives a connection fault notice denoting a communication fault between the on-line center and premises products such as a medical diagnosing device. SOLUTION: A non-connection test (250) on a software basis is manually started to confirm a communication fault between an on-line center (16) and premises products (12, 14). When the communication fault is confirmed, a point having the communication fault is disconnected by using the result of the non- connection test to specify a type of the fault and at which part of the system the fault takes place for the diagnosis of the communication fault. This method includes reports for recovery of the communication fault, confirmation of the correct connection through the execution of a series of tests by the system after the recovery and recording of the result to logs.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates generally to communication connection services for premises products or equipment and, more particularly, to subscribers with centrally managed online service centers and premises equipment such as medical diagnostic equipment. A method and apparatus for diagnosing a communication connection failure with a remote station.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, medical diagnostic apparatuses such as medical imaging systems and medical service support systems have become increasingly complicated. Examples of such systems include magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) systems, computed tomography (CT) systems, ultrasound and X-ray systems, and positron emission tomography (PET) systems. Although individual imaging systems alone are sufficiently complex, there are currently many facilities that incorporate these devices in various ways. In large-scale facilities, the system is networked for centralized control management, and such a system is connected to a picture archiving and communication system (PACS) via a network to store digital image data. In some cases, search and reconstruction can be performed later. The teleradiology system is configured to send digital image data to a remote location for review and diagnosis by a specialist and / or radiologist.

[0003] Since the medical diagnostic system is an important element in examining a patient and performing a medical treatment, the operation of the system may be adversely affected due to a slow response speed during operation or maintenance. Not be. Systems are becoming more complex, and often properly trained service personnel are not available at the equipment locations. as a result,
Remote control of a medical diagnostic device is becoming important for system maintenance.

Conventionally, remote operation of a medical diagnostic apparatus has been performed by voice communication between a worker and a centrally managed service facility. The worker calls the remote service facility to report the problem and asks the necessary questions to correct it. If telephone calls were not sufficient to address the inquiry, a serviceman or field engineer was dispatched to troubleshoot the system or provide any necessary assistance. Since communication with online centers is limited to voice communications, troubleshooting communication problems is particularly difficult. If the medical diagnostic device is located away from the centralized online service center, a service technician may be dispatched to a location different from the location where the problem actually occurs. . Further, since the device itself functions without being connected to the online center, a communication connection failure may occur without a customer knowing that a failure has occurred. If you need an online service in this situation,
Any communication failure can be a serious one that needs immediate attention.

[0005] In recent years, a system has been developed which automatically and periodically checks whether or not the connection is correctly established.
However, knowing that there is some problem in communication is completely different from diagnosing a failure. Even if it turns out that there is a communication problem, another process is needed to quickly diagnose and fix the problem in a timely manner. From the following description of the current state of the art of such systems, it will be easy to understand how important a correct connection is and how important it is to respond quickly when a failure is detected.

[0006] Improved computer networks have greatly simplified the task of supporting medical imaging devices. In particular, rather than having to call the service center to talk to technicians and engineers or wait for a call back from the service center, network technology allows the medical center Preventive techniques that can check the status of a subscriber device by communicating with a diagnostic device have become readily available. Further improvements have been proposed to provide remote services to medical diagnostic systems in order to provide continuous and interactive services at the level required by many facilities. Some such systems, when properly configured, allow a service center to interactively receive a message over a network and automatically respond to the message. It is also possible to transfer data necessary for analyzing the operation state of the medical diagnostic device at the time of electronic connection. This approach makes it extremely easy to identify system problems, ask questions to the subscriber's service provider, facilitate the transfer of updates and image processing protocols, and provide standard and customized reports. Can be sent to the subscriber system or subscriber station. Since this method has an interactive aspect, the medical diagnostic facility can receive the service provided by the centralized service facility as it is, and can easily communicate with the centralized service facility.

[0007]

Although the above-described measures for providing remote service to a medical diagnostic apparatus have greatly improved the service level and the level of information exchange, unexpected problems have arisen in connection. ing. The task of manually performing connection diagnostics for specific parts of a communication system is:
It is a labor-intensive type that takes time.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to enable both a centrally managed facility and a subscriber station to arbitrarily communicate so that the subscriber station can freely communicate with a centrally managed service facility and exchange accurate data with each other. The purpose of the present invention is to quickly identify connection problems at an online center and to make sure that the connection is correct while logging diagnostic and repair data as much as possible.

For this reason, a connection failure notification indicating a communication failure is received at the online center, a software-based disconnection test is manually started, the communication failure can be confirmed, and the communication failure is separated and repaired. The present invention provides a system and method for diagnosing a communication connection in which a communication failure can be quickly diagnosed by performing notification, and a redundant connection test can be performed after repair to confirm that a correct connection has been made. It is desirable. It also automatically checks if a particular customer is eligible to receive such value-added services, and if not, logs connection failures and only reports the number and frequency of failures. It is convenient if there is a system that allows the customer to change the number and frequency of value-added services that can be used for the connection failure diagnosis. Furthermore, if the standard service cannot solve the failure, it is advantageous to have a system that can further raise the level of the service and automatically check the status individually so that the diagnosis by the customer is successful within a certain time.

[0010]

According to the present invention, a communication connection failure between an online center and a subscriber station including a premises product is confirmed, the cause of the failure is diagnosed, and after the failure is repaired, the above-mentioned problem is solved. A system and method are provided for verifying that a correct connection has been made without such problems.

The present invention encompasses an approach that includes both hardware and software, which allows a connection failure to be diagnosed at an online center of a centrally managed facility. This approach includes an initial notification that a problem has occurred, a preemptive check to make sure the customer is eligible for diagnosis and repair, and a diagnosis to resolve the problem. included. If the customer is not entitled to diagnostics and repairs, the system will not provide diagnostic repair services. If the customer qualifies, the system checks the time elapsed since the failure report or the content of the failure report and, if the duration of this case is longer than the predetermined time, the service Raise the diagnostic level so that customers can be satisfied accordingly. The method and system isolates and diagnoses the problem, repairs it, and verifies that the correct connection has been made again. In this method, all failure notifications are recorded and a record of the diagnosis and repair performed is kept.

According to the process of the present invention,
A method for diagnosing a communication connection failure including receiving at the online center a connection failure notification indicating a communication failure between the center and a premises product. This method communicates by manually initiating a software-based disconnection test to identify communication failures between the online center and on-premises products, and by isolating this communication failure and identifying the type of failure. Diagnosing the disorder. This is reported to repair the communication failure.
Repeat the dial-up test several times between the center and the products in the premises to confirm that the correct connection has been made.

According to another aspect of the present invention, a communication connection fault diagnosis system includes at least one premises product;
At least one programmed to control premises products
And a subscriber station having a plurality of computers. A connection failure notification indicating a communication failure between the online center and the subscriber station can be received at the online center, and in response to the notification, the online center creates an instance of the database. The system includes:
A communication network is included that relays data from online centers to subscriber stations. The communication network includes a communication part at the online center and a communication part at the subscriber station. Also,
The communication network also includes functions for connecting the online center to the subscriber station via the external communication network. This system allows a service technician at the online center to initiate a disconnection test upon receiving a connection failure notification at the online center. Based on the result of the disconnection test, the online center automatically isolates a communication failure to the online center, the subscriber station or the external communication network. In many cases, external communication networks include public communication utilities. In this case, the present invention does not include the external communication network, but includes only a function of connecting to the network and isolating the problem to the network if there is any problem. Alternatively, a private line, intranet, or other closed owned system between the subscriber station and the online center may be included in the external communication network.

According to still another aspect of the present invention, when executed on one or more computers, one or more computers create a case reported as a communication connection diagnosis target and execute this. A computer program stored on a computer-readable recording medium for queuing and receiving input for initiating a disconnected test is disclosed. Perform a disconnection test to verify communication failures,
Report the problem so that it can be repaired. Once the repair is made, the disconnection test includes making a communication connection and verifying the success of the communication connection. If the communication connection is not successful, the communication failure is separated, and the separated communication failure is reported again so that it can be repaired. After receiving the input indicating that the restoration has been completed, the non-connection test is executed again to confirm that the correct communication connection has been made. If the communication connection is successful, the result is recorded in a log, and the communication connection diagnosis ends.

Various other features, objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description and drawings.

[0016]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Referring to FIG.
1 is a schematic block diagram of a medical diagnostic service network system 10 including a plurality of subscriber stations, such as customer A and customer B at 14.
Although two particular embodiments described herein refer to customer A and customer B as described below as subscriber stations, it will be appreciated that the number is not limited. The subscriber stations 12, 14 are connected to an online center 16 via a communication link, such as a network or remote link 20, of a server node 18 interconnected therewith. Although only one online center is shown and described here, the present invention
It will be appreciated that multiple online centers, each of which can communicate with each subscriber station, are also contemplated. Each subscriber station has configuration, service, maintenance, upgrades,
The online center 16 performs operations such as simply monitoring.
Includes associated operational software that can be performed by

The various systems disclosed herein may be provided by a remote link 20 or, in the example of the subscriber station 12, by a laptop computer 22 connected to the internal network 24 of customer A.
It is configured to be selectively linked to the online center 16. Such selective links are desirable for upgrading, maintaining, servicing, and performing regular monitoring of various systems and equipment at the customer's site, such as accessing data from the system or the system. Or sending data to the server.

Generally, a customer site contains a plurality of in-house products. A variety of different types of medical diagnostic systems may be included in the subscriber station. By way of example, in the present embodiment, the premises product comprises a single scanner 28 having a workstation configured to also function as a server or as a stand-alone server unrelated to any medical image scanner. And a plurality of medical image scanners 26 connected to the internal network 24 using the scanner 28 as a server. Alternatively, the subscriber station or customer site 14
It may also include a plurality of medical image scanners 30, 32, 34 that are not connected to a network. Each of the plurality of medical image scanners has a computer or workstation and internal modems 36, 38, 40, each for communicating with the online center 16 via a link 37, 39 and 41, respectively. The subscriber station is connected to a communication link such as the Internet 18. External communication networks include communication link 2
Internet 18 at the same time as 9, 37, 39 and 41
, Or a direct dial-up link via a dedicated line, an intranet, a public communication system, or the like, so that the Internet 18 is shown as a dotted line.

Each of the network scanners 26 has its own workstation for operation, and the network scanners 26 are linked together by an internal network 24 so that customers can have a centralized management system for each scanner. You can understand that. Further, such a system is provided with a communication component for enabling data to be sent and received on the communication link 29. Similarly, for the non-networked medical image scanner of the subscriber station 14, each of the scanners 30, 32, 34 has a respective communication link 37, 39, 41. FIG.
Shows links connected via an open network 18, respectively, but it will be understood that such links may be used to send and receive data to and from the system over a dedicated network. .

The embodiment shown in FIG. 1 uses magnetic resonance imaging (M
RI) systems, ultrasound systems, X-ray systems, computed tomography (CT) systems, and positron emission tomography (PET) systems, as well as medical facilities with any type of medical imaging system. However, the present invention is not limited to this. Such facilities may provide services to a centralized medical diagnostic management system, a picture archiving and communication system (PACS), a teleradiology system, and the like. These systems may be stationary and located in one location and are available at known network addresses, or may be portable, using various network addresses. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, each of the customer's subscriber stations 12, 14 may include any of the systems described above in any combination. Alternatively, a subscriber station may include all systems of one type. It may also include a single medical image scanner at the customer's subscriber station. The portable diagnostic system can be configured similarly to the case of the subscriber station 12 or the subscriber station 14. Such portable diagnostic systems can include various types of equipment, such as MRI, CT, ultrasound, X-ray systems, etc., and are moved to provide better services to different medical facilities and patients. .

The method and system for diagnosing communication connection faults of the present invention may be used to allow an appropriately authorized individual, such as an online engineer or technician, administrator, and / or other equivalently authorized individual to operate the online center 16. Computer or workstation 42 in remote link 20, which may be part or otherwise connected to online center 16 by dial-up link 44 to web server 46 of online center 16. It can be started from. Alternatively, the system can be activated by a laptop computer 22 connected to the customer's internal network 24 or individually connected to the scanner 30, 32 or 34. Remote link 20
Is an interactive voice recognition system (IV) in the online center 16 via a conventional telephone network 50.
R) The telephone connected to 52 and the telephone connection 48 can also function to connect the online center 16 to a subscriber station. The online center 16 includes a plurality of processing systems, including a computer for the IVR system 52, an automated support center 54, and a web server 46. Other processor systems include a computer for maintaining the voice mail system 58, pager system 60, e-mail system 62, and main frame 64, or so-called output report generators and notifiers. These systems can be interconnected and send and receive data via a network such as Ethernet 66, or can connect to at least one database 68 and send and receive data to and from this database. It is something. Although only one database is shown in FIG. 1 for the sake of simplicity, it will be understood that such a system may require a plurality of databases. It will also be appreciated that the IVR system is not limited to voice recognition systems, but can also handle interactive keypad input from a touch-tone telephone 48. A modem bank 70 is connected to the Ethernet 66, and relays data from the online center 16 and data to the subscriber stations 12 and 14 via a plurality of modem links 72.

As mentioned above, each of the systems and substations described herein with reference to FIG.
It can be selectively linked to the online center 16 via the network 18. According to the present invention, any acceptable network, such as an open network, a dedicated network, or a private virtual network, can be used. The communication link to the network may be of any acceptable type, such as a conventional telephone line, cable modem link, or digital subscriber line. Each system has a communication interface of generally known design
Hardware and software are included so that these systems can establish network links to exchange data with the online center 16. These systems also include interactive software for configuring the systems to send and receive data between the subscriber stations and the online center 16. In some cases, the network connection can be terminated when data is not transmitted or received between the subscriber station and the online center, and in other cases, the network connection is maintained continuously.

The present invention provides an online center 16 and 1
Methods and systems for diagnosing communication connection failures with subscriber stations, such as 2,14. Such communication failures can occur within the online center 16 and most commonly occur on the modem bank 70, the Ethernet 66, or the connection therebetween.
Also, the customer's internal network 24, networked scanner 26, server 28, individual modem 3
Communication failures may also occur at subscriber stations such as 6, 38, 40 or scanners 30, 32 or 34 that are not networked. In addition, communication link 2
Communication failures may occur in external communication networks, including 9, 37, 39, 41, 72 and / or the Internet 18 or public communication systems. As noted above, it will be appreciated that the external communication link may include a closed intranet system or an open public communication system.

Referring to FIG. 2, an overview of the system is shown in a high-level flowchart. The communication connection failure diagnosis process begins at 80 and proceeds to an initial notification step 82 which preferably includes the ability to receive both manual and automatic notification to the online center. The next high-level step is problem diagnosis 84, which verifies that the customer is eligible for diagnosis and diagnoses communication failures.
It is. Next, the fault is repaired at 86 and the communication connection is verified at 88. In the present invention, a report and a log are recorded before the process is closed at 90, and then the process 10 is performed.
Go to 0.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the details of the notification process outlined in FIG. After starting the process at 80, a notification is made 82 by phone 102 from the customer or phone 104 from the field engineer. Typically, calls are made from any of the subscriber stations and are answered by an online engineer 106 at an online center. This notification is collectively referred to as non-computerized connection failure notification. At 106, the online engineer inputs a communication failure to the online center computer system. Alternatively, a communication failure may be notified by the computerized automatic connection failure notification 108. For this, a log is recorded in the database 110. The computerized automatic connection failure notification is obtained between the online center and each subscriber station by an automatic disconnection test periodically performed by the computer of the online center 16 shown in FIG. 1 according to a schedule. It is. The online engineer inputs a communication failure notification to the computer at 106 in FIG. 2 or the data is automatically logged 110
The system checks 112 if the database case is already open, opens 114 cases if not already open, and queues the case until the online engineer can start 118 the diagnosis. . 112, 120 if there are existing cases
May have received notifications from multiple locations or received two calls, in which case the case is already queued with the online engineer waiting for diagnosis 118 .

The diagnostic step 84 of the present invention shown in FIG.
This will be further described following the detailed flowchart of FIG. Upon receiving a connection failure notification at the online center indicating a communication failure between the online center and the premises product, the online engineer manually initiates a software-based disconnection test 122 to establish a connection between the online center and the premises product. Check the communication failure between the two. Details of the software-based disconnection test will be described later with reference to FIG. If no communication failure is found in the disconnection test 124, a second manual disconnection test (not shown) is performed to verify the validity of the results. If both are successful, the history of all connection failure notifications is recorded in a log and the database is updated 130 so that the log can be examined to diagnose any intermittent problems. Next, close the case at 132,
The system ends the diagnostic routine at 100.

On the other hand, the connection failure 126
If is confirmed, the system checks the database 128 as to whether the premises product or customer qualifies for a communication connection failure diagnosis. If 134 is not entitled to a diagnosis, the log is updated at 130 to indicate that a report has been received, the case is closed at 132, and the diagnostic process ends at 100. The log of such information may be used to notify the customer of the connection failure report, and search for a qualification authority for a subsequent diagnosis. Such a notice is sent from a person in charge at the online center 16 side, the automatic voice mail 58 in FIG.
0, can be supplied by automatic email 62. This qualification may include a service package or a warranty package. A database check performed on the qualification in step 128 of FIG. 4 ensures that a particular customer has signed up for a communication connection failure diagnosis. This check may also include an automatic check to confirm that the fulfilled contract is in the file.

The system confirms that the user is a user who is entitled to a communication connection diagnosis 128, 1
At 36 and 138, the status of the computerized database case is checked. If the case is unflagged 140, then at 142, the communication failure is isolated to identify the type of failure, and either a communication failure 144 at the online center, a communication failure 146 at the subscriber station, or an external communication failure 148. As a result, the type of the fault is determined. To initiate the external communication failure repair 86, an external fault flag is raised at 150 and the repair service is notified accordingly and an external repair is performed at 152. Failure is a communication failure at the online center 14
4 or communication failure 146 at the subscriber station, the
An engineer performs the repair at the online center 154 or a field engineer performs the repair at the subscriber station site 156.

When the restoration is completed 158, the verification process 8
8 can start. In order to verify that the communication connection failure has been successfully repaired, a manual disconnection test subroutine is called at 160, and if successful, 162 this subroutine is called again at 164 to check for redundancy. If both the non-connection tests are successful, the log is updated at 166 and 130, the case is closed at 132, and the fault diagnosis process 100 ends. However, if any disconnect test fails 160, 168 or 164, 17
0, the process returns to 138 to check the status of the case and continues with standard diagnostics 140 at 172 until the case is flagged.

One important criterion for flagging cases at 138, 172 is the duration of individual cases. For example, if the case has not been resolved for a predetermined period of time or more, the case is flagged, and the service level is raised via 172. This will be described with reference to FIG. The first step in raising the level of diagnostic service is to have the site go through a manual
Checking if 74 is indicated. If there is a problem at the site 176, the present invention checks 178 if the field engineer is at the site of the subscriber station. A field engineer is working on the site at 178,
180, the area service manager is called at 182 and the service
Notify that the level needs to be raised. If the field engineer is not at the site 178, 184, call 186 both the field engineer and the area service manager. Notify both parties that the service level needs to be raised, but after the case has been upgraded, it is common for only the area service manager to be notified, requiring follow-up to the field engineer . Meanwhile, a field engineer is called and sent to the subscriber station site to complete 188 the diagnosis. When the location of the problem is identified and the repair is completed 190, the details of the site failure are recorded 192, and the manual disconnection test subroutine is called at 194. If the test is successful 196, the subroutine is called again at 198 to confirm that the correct communication connection has been made 200. The successful diagnosis and repair is logged at 130 in FIG. 4, the case is closed 132 and the process ends 100.

Returning to FIG. 5, when the manual disconnection test subroutine fails in any of the redundancy confirmations 202 and 204,
The system determines that this is a problem at the site
At 6,208, the diagnosis is continued at 188. However, a communication failure was found not to be at the subscriber station site 206, 210, or a manual disconnection test after the initial level up 172 was found to be a failure at the online center 174, In the case of 212, the service level is raised at the online center at 214 in FIG.

Next, reference is made to FIG. Judgment is necessary to raise the level of diagnosis at the online center 2
14, the primary support person is called at 216 to diagnose 218 a communication failure at the online center.
If the problem was diagnosed 220, 222, the fault is repaired at 224 and the redundant manual disconnect test subroutine is called at 226 and 228. If both tests are successful 2
30, 232, the restoration was successful, and 13 in FIG.
0 logs the result, 132 closes the case and 100 terminates the diagnostic process. However, FIG.
If any of the disconnect tests 226, 228 fail, 234, 236, the process verifies 238 that the problem is with the online center. If the communication failure is not at the online center 240, the level of service at the subscriber station site is increased (FIG. 5).
176). It should be understood that the determination at 238 in FIG. 6 may include three status checks to confirm that the problem is not with the external communication system. If the external communication system is found to be faulty,
At 150, an external failure flag is set, and at 152, a request for repair of the external system is notified.

If it is determined that the problem is still within the online center (238, 242 in FIG. 6), or if the primary support personnel cannot diagnose the problem 220, 244, then a specialized connection development team On the other hand, the level of the case is raised 246 again. In this case, 24
At step 8, the case is upgraded to a primary state until the problem is diagnosed and the problem is repaired. Once the fault has been repaired, a redundant manual disconnection test is performed 226, 228 until successful at 232. At the time of success, the result is recorded in a log (130 in FIG. 4), the case is closed 132, and
If 0, the communication connection failure diagnosis ends.

The manual disconnection test subroutine will now be described with reference to FIG. When called, or at start-up 250, the online center attempts 252 to connect to the customer's subscriber station. Successful connection 25
4, 256, the subscriber station is instructed at 258 to call back to the online center. Next, the first connection is broken at 260 and the online center waits 262 for a return call from the subscriber station. If any of the subscriber stations did not call back 264, 266 or the first connection was not successful 254, 268, a communication connection failure is confirmed at 270, and an error code is assigned and the communication failure is determined. Identify the part where it occurred and cut it off. Next, the result is logged at 272, the manual disconnection test subroutine ends, and control returns to the main algorithm. First connection and second
254, 256 and 2 if all connections succeed
64, 274, report successful connection at 276, log, and terminate the subroutine at 272.

Thus, the present invention comprises the steps of receiving at the online center a connection failure notification indicating a communication failure between the online center and the premises product of the subscriber station, and manually receiving the notification after receiving the notification. Starting a base disconnection test to confirm a communication failure between the online center and the premises product. Next, the method includes diagnosing the communication failure by isolating the communication failure, identifying the type of the failure, and then notifying to repair the communication failure. Manually initiating the software-based disconnection test involves connecting the online center to the premises product, checking if the connection was successful, and if the connection was successful, separating the premises product from the online center. Automatically instructing the on-premises product to initiate and complete the connection. Failure is reported if any of the connections are not successful, and the results are logged in a computerized database.

The database is checked to determine whether it is entitled to receive a communication connection failure diagnosis to confirm that the owner of the in-house product is the other party to which a service contract for such a diagnostic service has been concluded. If you qualify,
Create a computerized database case and place it in a computer queue so that online engineers can search it. Check the status of the case to see if a special case is needed. If a special case is needed, raise the level of the case to get a higher level of support. Further levels of support may include electronically calling a service technician, such as when a reported case is not resolved for a period of time, to enhance the level of diagnosis. In diagnosing communication failure, the present invention
Distinguish communication failures at the center, communication failures at subscriber stations, and external communication failures. After restoration, the present invention verifies the communication connection redundantly and records the result in a log to confirm that a correct connection has been made.

The present invention also provides a communication fault diagnosis system including at least one subscriber station having at least one premises product associated therewith and at least one computer programmed to control the premises product. including. The system includes an online center that can receive either a computerized automatic notification or a non-computerized notification and a connection failure notification indicating a communication failure between the online center and the subscriber station. including. The online center responds by creating an instance of the database. The system includes a communication network that relays data from the online center to the subscriber station, and includes a communication portion within the online center and also includes a communication portion within the subscriber station. The communication network also includes the function of connecting the online center to the subscriber station via an external communication network such as the Internet or a public telephone system. However, within the scope of the present invention, the communication network need not necessarily include an external communication network. For example, the present invention does not include a public telephone system, but has the ability to connect to such a telephone system, isolate problems to it, and request its repair.

When the online center service representative initiates an interactive disconnection test upon receiving the connection failure notification, the online center may initiate a connection between the online center, the subscriber station and / or the external communication network. Communication faults for at least one can be automatically isolated. The system receives a connection failure notification as a notification indicating a communication failure by one of a computerized automatic connection failure notification and a non-computerized connection failure notification, and performs an interactive disconnection test. Computer in an online center programmed to verify communication failures. The computer also receives input from the user and initiates the execution of the interactive disconnect test, the user monitors the interactive disconnect test and, if necessary, the online center engineer allows the interactive disconnect test to be performed. Is programmed to allow you to change

Further, the computer is programmed to confirm that the state of the communication failure diagnosis is not in a non-standard state such as a time limit. The computer may be programmed to set a flag when the communication failure period expires as determined by the standard service diagnosis being performed for a predetermined time. In this way, the service diagnosis is raised to a higher service level using the flag. The computer of the system also includes a process that checks the database to verify that the subscriber station is eligible for a communication connection fault diagnosis and performs a fault diagnosis only on the qualified subscriber station.

The above-described interactive disconnection test performed on the online center's computer attempts a first connection between the online center and the subscriber station. If successful, after disconnection, the subscriber station is caused to make a second connection from the subscriber station to the online center. First
If one of the connections fails, the communication failure is confirmed and reported, and the repair is started after the communication failure is isolated.

Also, the invention, when executed by one or more computers, causes one or more computers to create a case reported for communication connection diagnostics and queue it. Online
It includes a computer program stored in a computer-readable recording medium in a computer of the center. Further, the computer receives the input, starts the disconnection test, and executes the disconnection test to verify a communication failure. The disconnection test establishes a communication connection between the online center and the subscriber station in verifying whether the communication connection was successful. Otherwise, the computer verifies that the user of the system is entitled to a communication connection diagnostic and is reported so that the communication failure can be isolated and repaired. After receiving the input indicating that the restoration has been completed, a non-connection test is performed to confirm that a correct communication connection has been made.
If the communication connection is successful, the result is recorded in a log, and the communication connection diagnosis ends. The computer program further
The computer performs and completes the steps of the methods and operations described above for the system.

Although the present invention has been described with reference to the preferred embodiments, the present invention can be embodied in forms other than those specifically described, such as forms equivalent to the present invention, forms in which the present invention is modified, and forms in which the present invention is partially modified. It should be understood that these are all included in the claims of the present application.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a system to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a high-level flowchart outlining the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing in detail a flowchart of the present system shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing in detail a flowchart of the system shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a part of the process shown in FIG. 4, illustrating an exceptional level-up process used in a case where a flag is set in a standard diagnosis.

FIG. 6 is a flow chart showing a portion of the process shown in FIG. 4, illustrating an exceptional level up process used in cases flagged by standard diagnostics.

FIG. 7 is a detailed flowchart illustrating a manual disconnection test used in FIGS. 3 to 6;

[Description of Signs] 10 Medical diagnostic service network system 12, 14 Subscriber station (premise product) 16 Online center 18 Server node 20 Remote link 22 Laptop computer 24 Internal network

Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor George Peter Jshore, United States 53188, Waukesha Crestwood, Wisconsin Drive 731 (72) Inventor Joel Jens United States, 53027 Wisconsin, Hartford Highway 83 2184 (72) Inventor Louis Crisberg, U.S.A., 53188, Waukesha, Wisconsin, North University Drive, 420 (72) Inventor Don Tome, U.S.A., 53214, Wisconsin, West, Alice South 72) Inventor Sarah Hatell, United States.53045, Brookfield, Tilton Lane, Wisconsin, 18320 (72) Inventor Todd Earl Reinke, United States, 53029, Heartland, Wisconsin Meadow Lane 2640

Claims (26)

[Claims] Receiving, at said online center (16), a connection failure notification (82) indicating a communication failure between the online center (16) and the premises products (12, 14); Manually start the disconnection test (12
2) checking the communication failure between the online center (16) and the local products (12, 14); isolating the communication failure and specifying the type of the failure (14)
2) thereby diagnosing the communication failure (84) and reporting the communication failure to repair (152, 154, 156) the communication failure. 2. The step of manually initiating (122) a software-based disconnection test connects the online center (16) to the premises products (12, 14);
It is confirmed (254) whether or not the connection is successful. If the connection is successful (256), another connection from the local products (12, 14) to the online center (16) is started and completed. The method of claim 1, further defined as automatically instructing (258) the premises product to: 3. The method of claim 2, further comprising the step of reporting a failure if any of the connections are not successful, and logging the failure to a computerized database. The described method. 4. Checking a computerized database as to whether the premises products (12, 14) are eligible for a communication connection failure diagnosis (1).
28) The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of: 5. The step of automatically checking (12)
8) is the computerized database (6)
The method of claim 4, further defined as electronically checking 8) to confirm that the owner of the premises product has a service contract to receive a communication connection failure diagnosis. 6. The method of claim 1, further comprising the steps of: creating a computerized database instance; enqueuing the computerized database instance (116); and enabling an online engineer to search (118). The method of claim 1 comprising: 7. The method of claim 6, further comprising the step of: checking (138) the status of the computerized database case and, if the status is not normal (172), further increasing the level of support for communication connection failure diagnosis. The described method. 8. The method of claim 7, wherein increasing the level further comprises electronically calling (182, 186) a service representative to increase the service diagnostic level. 9. The step of isolating a communication failure comprises distinguishing between a communication failure at the online center (144), a communication failure at the subscriber station (146), and an external communication failure (148). The method of claim 1, further defined. 10. Redundant confirmation of communication connection (160, 1
64. The method of claim 1, further comprising logging (130) a result of the communication connection failure diagnosis. 11. At least one premises product (26, 2).
A subscriber station (12, 14) having at least one computer programmed to control the premises products; an online center (16) and said subscriber station. Receives a connection failure notification indicating a communication failure with (12, 14) and creates a database case in response to this (1).
16) The online center (16) capable of communicating with the communication parts (70, 7) of the online center (16).
2) and a communication portion (22, 36, 38, 40) of the subscriber station (12, 14), and connects the online center (16) to an external communication network (1).
8) The online center (16) having a function of connecting to the subscriber station (12, 14) via (8).
And a communication network (18) for relaying data to the subscriber stations (12, 14), and receiving the connection failure notification (102, 104, 108) by the online center (16). Then, the service personnel of the online center (16) starts an interactive disconnection test (122), and based on the results of the disconnection test (124, 126), the online center (16) starts the online disconnection test. A communication connection failure diagnosis system for automatically disconnecting (142) a communication failure to at least one of the center (144), the subscriber station (146), and the external communication network (148). 12. A connection failure notification as a notification indicating a communication failure is received by one of a computerized automatic connection failure notification (108) and a non-computerized connection failure notification (102, 104). The system of claim 11, further comprising a computer (64) programmed in the online center (16) to perform an interactive disconnection test (122) to verify a communication failure. 13. The computer (64) further comprises:
A program is received to receive input from the user and to initiate execution of the interactive disconnect test (122) and allow the user to monitor the interactive disconnect test and modify the interactive disconnect test as needed. 14. The system of claim 12, wherein the system is configured. 14. The computer (64) further comprises:
13. The system of claim 12, wherein the system is programmed to verify that the communication failure condition (138) has not expired. 15. The computer (64) further comprises:
15. The system of claim 14, wherein the system is programmed to flag (172) a communication failure after a predetermined time period (140) of the standard service diagnosis and to enhance the level of the service diagnosis to achieve the confirmation. . 16. The computer (64) further comprises:
The database (68) is checked to confirm that the subscriber station (12, 14) is eligible for the communication connection failure diagnosis (128), and the failure diagnosis is performed only for the qualified subscriber station (136). 13. The system of claim 12, wherein the system is programmed to: 17. The interactive disconnection test (250) performed by the computer (64) of the online center, between the online center (16) and the subscriber stations (12, 14). The first connection (252) is attempted, and the connection is successful (254, 256) and the connection is disconnected (26).
0) The system of claim 12, wherein after 0), the subscriber station makes a second connection (264) from the subscriber station (12, 14) to the online center (16). 18. The computer (64) further comprises:
The first connection (252) or the second connection (258)
Is failed (266, 268), a communication failure is reported (270, 276), and if both the first connection (252) and the second connection (258) are successful (2
18. The system of claim 17, wherein the system is programmed to report (276) a successful communication at (56, 274). 19. The computer (64) further comprises:
13. The system of claim 12, wherein the system is programmed to report the communication failure (144, 146, 148) and initiate repair of the disconnected communication failure. 20. When executed on one or more computers, one or more computers create and queue the reported case for communication connection diagnostics (116). In response to the input, the disconnection test is started (118, 12).
2) The communication connection is made (252) and the communication connection succeeds (25).
4) Execute a non-connection test to confirm whether or not (268) (1)
22), verify the communication failure, isolate the communication failure (142), and report it to repair the isolated communication failure (14).
4, 146, 148) After receiving the input indicating that the restoration has been completed (158), a non-connection test is executed (160) to check the correct communication connection. If the communication connection is successful (166), the result is logged. A computer-readable recording medium storing a computer program for recording (130) and terminating the communication connection. 21. The computer program as claimed in claim 1, further comprising: a computerized automatic connection failure notification (108) and a non-computerized connection failure notification (102;
21. The computer-readable recording medium according to claim 20, wherein the connection failure notification (82) is received as a notification indicating a communication failure by one of 104). 22. The computer program causes one or more computers to further receive an input from a user and start performing an interactive non-connection test (118, 122), wherein the user executes the interactive non-connection test. 21. The computer readable medium of claim 20, wherein the connection test is monitored to allow the interactive disconnection test to be changed as needed. 23. The computer program as claimed in claim 13, wherein the one or more computers further include a communication failure state (138) whose expiration date has not expired (1).
72) The computer-readable recording medium according to claim 20, wherein the confirmation is made. 24. The computer program, after performing a standard service diagnosis on one or more computers for a predetermined period of time (140), flags a communication failure (172) and performs a service diagnosis (C 24. The computer-readable medium of claim 23, wherein the confirmation is achieved by increasing the level of D). 25. The computer program as claimed in claim 1, wherein one or more computers further check a database (68) to qualify the subscriber station (12, 14) for a communication connection failure diagnosis. 21. The computer readable storage medium of claim 20, wherein the confirmation is made (128) and fault diagnosis is performed (136) only for qualified subscriber stations. 26. The computer program, according to claim 1, further comprising: one or more computers; and a first connection (252) between said online center (16) and said subscriber station (12, 14). Attempt and succeed (256) Disconnect (260)
Later, the subscriber station (12, 14) makes a second connection (264) from the subscriber station (12, 14) to the online center (16); (254) or the second connection (26)
If (4) fails (266, 268), a communication failure is reported (270), and if both the first connection (254) and the second connection (264) succeed (256,
21. The computer readable recording medium according to claim 20, wherein the communication success is reported at 274).